A short section of this ride has been changed since the book went to print (it’s on the return leg between Clytha Hill and Llancayo). This is to take in some lovely and very quiet lanes through Gwehelog, instead of retracing the outward leg. Please follow the online map and route directions given here as opposed to the map in the book.
OS Map (zoom in for more detail):
Download file for GPSGPX & Directions
Route directions PDF (right click to download)
GPX file (right click to download)
Hi Jack,
we did this ride yesterday in glorious sunshine. The GPX and map you share above does not quite tally with the ride as described in the book. In your book the loop starts and finishes at Bettws Newydd whereas your course and GPX file on the website takes you around Gwehelog and adds a further 4 miles to the total.
No complaints from us – it was a still a stunning ride by the way so many thanks!!
Best wishes,
Simon (@nashtownboy) and Alison (@rubbishwife)
Cardiff.
Hi Simon,
You’re correct and this is noted in the Route Directions PDF sheet. And on the top of the web page. I think it’s an improvement over the route as per the book, a decision I made once the book had gone to press and I realised there was an alternative that avoided doing that busy road north of Usk twice.
Jack
A friend and I just had the BEST day out on this ride ! Good Friday 2016, the sun shone, the birds sang, the views spectacular and the climbs worth every pedal-push. We saw a wood carpeted with Wood Sorrel and Celandines that truly made our day. Thank you !
And, you were right — small wheels were perfectly able to make the distance and the climbs !
This was my tenth Lost Lanes Wales, ridden on 2nd June 2016. I started from Newport train station but instead of finishing there I carried on along the right bank of the Usk on NCR47 and NCR4 eventually picking up NCR88 to cross the Wentloog Levels and finish in Cardiff. If you do the same you’ll need to work you way around a section of NCR47, running parallel to Pugsley Street, which is falling into the river. I rode 95k in all and logged just over 1000m of height gain.
After a rather unpleasant but thankfully short initial section through some of Newport’s industrial sprawl this quickly turns into another splendid ride through lots of quiet country lanes. The countryside was a vibrant green on a lovely late-Spring day, largely unspoilt despite the over-manicured golf course of The Celtic Manor. If you’re lucky you might also also catch sight of the cohort of Roman Legionnaires I saw wandering the cycle path in Caerleon!
For the best views of the restored windmill at Llancayo don’t forget to look behind you as you climb up towards Bettws Newydd where the old church is 250m or so off the route. Don’t be tempted to pass on by – the 15th century rood screen and the 3000-year old (or so it’s claimed) yews in the churchyard are worth a visit. Later in the ride, the busy inn at Newbridge-on-Usk (now part of the Celtic Manor empire) makes a pleasant lunch-time venue – go for the al-fresco menu served at one of the riverside tables (but you’ll need to order at the bar).
“Gair i’r gall” – Peter Jones’ bench at the back of the church in Bettws Newydd is a good place to spend some peaceful minutes contemplating life, the universe and some of the hills to be climbed later in the ride.
A lovely ride! Trying No. 28 tomorrow. Thanks!
Did this route, with its variation, about a month ago in glorious weather and it was one of the best routes I’ve done. Great views across to Blorenge and the Sugar Loaf from the northern section and a feeling of total immersion in a farming community. I found the steep lane down from Coed-y-Bwynedd required caution because of the overgrown hedges and the build-up of gravel in the middle of the road gave me a very narrow line to ride. But it was worth it and of course the weather helped!
Thanks.
Is it only me or does the online version not include the pub recommendations from the book?
Hi Christian, if by “online version” you mean the Kindle version, then all the pubs and pitstops are there along with the rest of the content of the book. If you’re not seeing them there, then I can put you in touch with the publishers who should be able to sort out the problem. If by “online version” you mean this webpage, no, all it contains is the route directions, gps navigation files & OS maps, that’s to say, the digital resources that are intended to supplement what’s in book.
Jack
I had a cracking day on this route today – the highlight was the way the views to the north open up when you get up past that windmill. One minute, you’re looking at the Usk valley, the next, mid Wales starts to spread out in front of you with all the potential that goes with it.
The Clytha Arms was a great pit stop, but man, the hill afterwards! It’s a stinker – then you think it’s finished – and it hasn’t! The reward is that whizz down the B-road back into Usk which was nicely traffic free.
Thanks for the ride – it was inspirational.